From priest to pope—will his missionary past define him as the leader of 1.4 billion Catholics, or will Pope Leo become something entirely new?

Father Robert Prevost’s early years in Peru shaped his ministry and vision for the church—but few know the brutal reality he encountered there in the 1980s and 1990s.

No one ever expected a U.S.-born pope. In this first-ever I “Inside the Vatican” Deep Dive series, those who know him best reveal who Pope Leo XIV—“the American pope”—really is. In Episode 1, we hear from the genealogist who uncovered his Louisiana roots, a teacher, and fellow Augustinian friars and friends.

Greg Heille, O.P., joins “Preach” host Ricardo da Silva, S.J., to reflect on the homiletic legacy of Pope Francis: always on message, spoken from the heart, simple without losing depth.

Preaching for Laetare Sunday, the Fourth Sunday of Lent, Year C, Rev. Stephen Tully complicates the story of the prodigal son, allowing his ministry among marginalized communities to shape his reading and preaching of the parable.

“I become better—a better bishop and a better priest, and better to my men—precisely because I want to generate love for the migrant who’s passing through this diocese,” says Bishop Joseph Tyson of Yakima. “We’ve got to find a way of preaching and teaching that better.”